Thirteenth Lady's Comback: Her Everyday Life as a Bystander-Chapter 37 - 20: News from Afar (Part 1)

The group attended to Old Madam during breakfast, then rotated shifts to have their own meal.

Today was the first day of the month; even though the First and Second Wives had moved to the Capital, the rule of paying respects on the first and fifteenth remained unchanged. Shortly, the Third Madam came over with the Sixth Young Master, Fifth Miss, and Sixth Miss to greet the Old Madam.

The Fifth Young Master was twelve years old this year and had long moved to the outer courtyard, only having one rest day per month. The Sixth Young Master, soon to turn six, would also be moving to the outer courtyard. His favorite pastime was clinging to the Old Madam for snacks, chubby as he was. The Fifth Miss, at eleven years old, had bloomed into a beauty, though as an illegitimate daughter, she was gentle and quiet. The Sixth Miss, at nine, had been raised at the Old Madam’s side, surrounded by a roomful of pretty maids, developing a temperament that refused to let anyone less than beautiful approach, causing great concern for the Third Madam, who remarked that raising daughters required more effort than raising sons.

Around nine o’clock, a young maid outside reported that Mrs. Zhao had arrived. With no longer being overshadowed by the First and Second Wives, the Third Madam, who was now managing the household, had become more cheerful. Upon hearing of Mrs. Zhao’s arrival, she remarked to the Old Madam, "This Granny Zhao is a good one; the people she’s sent to our house over the years have all been very useful."

The Old Madam also sighed, "A person must have basic fairness in both life and work, and Granny Zhao knows how to accumulate virtue." Then, she turned to Susu and said, "Go and meet Mrs. Zhao; it’s worth it for your friendship."

Susu smiled and said, "If it weren’t for Mrs. Zhao sending me to Yangzhou, how could I be serving by the Old Madam’s side? I must thank Mrs. Zhao properly."

Susu lifted the curtain and stepped out, finding Mrs. Zhao waiting outside the Sui’an Hall. From afar, Susu drew closer, and when Mrs. Zhao saw her appearance, she paused, her emotions mixed.

Susu bore a 70% resemblance to Aunt Su, yet she was even more beautiful and carried herself with greater grace. She wore a simple white silk gown, a pale green jacket embroidered with twining lotus flowers, and a light yellow gauze skirt. Her ears were adorned with a pair of emerald jade earrings, enhancing her fair and radiant complexion.

Even though her thick bangs concealed her forehead, those eyes added vibrancy to her whole face, making her three times more beautiful than when they met a year ago. To be such a beauty and still a maid—who knows if it’s fortune or misfortune!

Seeing Mrs. Zhao staring at her in a daze, Susu, aware of her own charm, smiled lightly, "Has Mama been well recently?"

The young maid accompanying Mrs. Zhao was already mesmerized and, upon hearing Susu speak, marveled at how even her voice was pleasing. Mrs. Zhao, snapping back to reality, laughed and said, "All is well, all is well." She took Susu’s hand, "I always say the Old Madam here knows how to cultivate people; look at you now, I can hardly recognize you!" and discreetly slipped a small paper ball to Susu, who unobtrusively tucked it into her waistband, tugging on Mrs. Zhao, saying, "The Old Madam has asked me to bring Mama inside!"

Once inside, Mrs. Zhao first paid her respects to the Old Madam and the Third Madam. The Old Madam smiled, "Bring a chair for Mrs. Zhao." Now Susu understood that someone of Mrs. Zhao’s status had no right to sit in the guest seating before the gentry; receiving a chair or an embroidered stool was already a great sign of respect from the family.

After Mrs. Zhao was seated, she remarked, "It’s been two years since I last saw the Old Madam, and you look even younger. Just now, upon seeing Susu, she looked like a fairy, and entering this room, it’s full of fairies. This old lady has truly broadened her horizons today."

The Third Madam covered her mouth with her handkerchief, laughing, "Isn’t that just what Mrs. Zhao said? Now, when my aunt and I go out, we don’t even look like mother and daughter; people believe us to be sisters instead!" The Old Madam pointed at the Third Madam, playfully scolding, "You speak such nonsense as if I’ve truly become an old witch!" She laughed as she said this.

Mrs. Zhao, having traveled widely and being a broker from the Capital, heard many fresh stories and picked out those fitting for noble ladies of grand households to hear, amusing the Old Madam and the Third Madam, much to the amazement of all the maids and older women in the room. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

In due time, Yang Liu, who was responsible for picking maids, and Mrs. Qin entered the room. Yang Liu said, "The young maids sent by Mrs. Zhao are all very disciplined, but I’d like to trouble Mama to tell me about their backgrounds." The Old Madam waved them away, saying, "Go ahead, and Susu, you go and have a look, too." Susu followed Mrs. Zhao, Yang Liu, and Nanny Qin out of the room.

Though the First and Second Wives took most of the servants with them upon leaving, those remaining in Yangzhou were still plentiful. The Third Madam was keen on maintaining the household’s discipline; now in charge and supported by the Old Madam, some honest elderly servants who could no longer work were given retirement pensions and allowed to retire to the estate. The Song family, while kind, was not a charity; some of those who engaged in mischief and laziness were dismissed from the house.

The whole family of Housekeeper Qiao, except for Yang Liu, moved with the First Wife to the Capital. The Old Madam remarked that once Yang Liu reached the appropriate age, she would be sent to Shangjing to find her own marriage partner, to avoid separating family members.

This round of selecting new maids from outside was also Susu’s suggestion. At thirteen, the Old Madam’s personal affairs were increasing, and she was starting to struggle with managing them all alone. At the time, Sister Amber had Dong Song by her side, and later Susu joined them. It was time for Susu to start finding a few successors to gradually train, so when she eventually left the house, she could leave someone trustworthy for the Old Madam.

Previously, Mrs. Zhao and some other brokers brought some over, but none particularly caught Susu’s attention. It wasn’t that they were bad, but their temperament wasn’t suited to managing the storeroom, prompting the Old Madam to privately remark, "Usually, I see Susu treating the little maids with a soft voice, but rarely have I seen her being this picky."

Susu’s criteria in selecting maids weren’t exacting as she didn’t judge by appearance or literacy, nor did she concern herself with embroidery or cooking skills. Susu only looked for propriety and a clear-eyed disposition as people say the eyes are the windows to the soul; thus, while Yang Liu and Nanny Qin chose people, Susu merely observed.

A dozen or so little girls, each around seven or eight, stood respectfully in a line, their attire similar to when Susu first entered the household. Some dared to meet one’s gaze while answering, some shrank back, some answered confidently with unsteady eyes, and others spoke hesitantly with envy and ambition in their looks at Yang Liu and the others. There were children from impoverished families as well as a few from landlord families sold by stepmothers, with one or two literate among them.

Yang Liu took a liking to a literate girl who responded confidently, while Nanny Qin picked two who were both lovely and smart, but Susu chose the one with no particular skills who was sold by her stepmother.

Later, the Third Madam also selected two, paid Mrs. Zhao the silver, and invited her to stay for a meal.

The banquet laid out in the flower hall included eight cold and eight hot dishes, four types of rice, and two soups, offering Mrs. Zhao a great deal of respect. Though Mrs. Zhao was not overly concerned with the food, upon seeing the sumptuous spread, her anxious heart was finally put at ease. Earlier, when she saw Susu’s fine attire and noticed her adorable coquettish manner before the Song family’s Old Madam, Mrs. Zhao knew Susu had unquestionably secured her place within the Song family. The banquet was indeed a gesture from the Old Madam to honor Susu!